Modern real estate agents come in all shapes, sizes, and personalities. The diversity within the industry is truly amazing– and really one of our favorite things about working in real estate marketing. But whether you’re thinking of the suave reality stars from Selling Sunset or the quirky but diligent Phil Dunphy from Modern Family, the one quality all these agents have in common is that they’re all very much extroverted. Listen, I’m going to level with you introverts: being a real estate agent REQUIRES you to routinely go outside of your comfort zone. By all measures, real estate is still very much a relationship-driven industry. What that means is that you need to meet people and connect with them. Genuinely. And as often as possible. Additionally, you’re going to have to do things you’ve never done before. Simply put: Get used to doing new things. The trick is to find meaningful ways to get your name out there without having to be the life of the party or center of attention.

 

Social Media Content

Good content isn’t easy. Between Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn – we recommend picking 1 or 2 platforms and finding a way to be consistent. But here’s the thing, the content you make has to be compelling and/or feature you. Posting the generic stuff provided by your brokerage, or stuff that’s too broad, won’t help you.

Video/stories ideas:

• What “$XXX” can get you in <your market>?
• Your markets most expensive and least expensive listing of the week
• Market updates with stats (very neighborhood/subdivision oriented)
• Memorable / funny new listing images
• FAQs
• Local restaurant/business posts (share as stories)

 

Handwritten Letters

Handwritten notes create a personal connection with potential clients, showing that you took the time to craft a thoughtful message and address it directly to them.  Who should you send them to? There are several paths. For one, you can target expired listings. Realistically, though, you’d likely want to find homes that expired several months ago and never relisted versus properties that expired that day. Why? Well, handwritten letters are likely too slow to be your first avenue of contact for those. You’d want to call them directly the day of. That said, a hand-written note can be a great follow up to a phone call. Additionally, there are a lot of tools out there to help find information on property owners who have a lot of equity and/or have been in their property for quite some time. Using the data out there to help select who to send these letters to allows you increase the likelihood of getting your face in front of the right person at the right time.

To expand on this a little further, we’re even still big fans of traditional postcard mailer campaigns for agents. While many people scoff at traditional postcard mailers (we’re firm believers that they can be effective and still work in many markets / circumstances) – they offer a refreshing change from the inundation of impersonal emails and automated messages that people receive on a daily basis.

 

Local Interviews, Market Reports, and Event Calendars

Creating content that appeals to your sphere is a great way to attract potential clients. One of our biggest suggestions for new and introverted agents is to try and interview and promote local businesses in the area. Contact these people and ask them for an interview. By creating content that helps other business owners, you’re in effect creating a partnership amongst other entrepreneurs as well as growing stronger connections within the community. People WANT to get to know the businesses in their area. Give them what they want! The cool part is that these business owners will then promote the interviews FOR YOU! That said, you’ll need a place to house / deliver this content. This is when your own agent website really comes in handy. Take a look at this Chicago real estate agent utilizing this very technique.  These interviews are also GREAT social media posts.

Expanding on this, Market Reports and Event Calendars are also great for hyper localized content. People want to know this stuff. Do the research and get the info out there! Suggestions for content delivery:

• Website posts + sharing on social media
• Mailers
• Newsletters

 

Google Ads (Or Other Online Outlets)

Last but not least, agents who have a hard time opening up in social settings can rely on the tried-and-true digital advertising platforms to help grow their business. With the right keywords, landing page(s), and budget – agents can really do well with Google Adwords campaigns in 2023 and beyond. That said, it is strongly recommended that you have your own website when using traditional Google Adwords campaigns to help attract leads. Why? This allows you full control of the landing page(s) and analytics. That said, there are some options for those who don’t have their own site – feel free to contact us today to discuss more!

 

Facebook Community or Interest Groups

One of the most powerful ways to connect with a lot of people in a neighborhood is to become active in their community Facebook page. If you spend the time to answer questions or frequently lead discussions on these boards (even if they’re not specifically real estate related), then follow up by befriending the people you talk to, you’ll find that your sphere can grow exponentially in a very short amount of time. Additionally, these groups can also actually be a source of direct leads – it’s very common to find people looking for new living arrangements on these boards.